Southern Ming Rebel Army

Chapter 358 Datong (Part )

Late May.

Meng Bian disguised himself and sneaked all the way to Shanxi. After entering Shanxi, Meng Bian keenly felt that there was a strange atmosphere in Datong area, and soldiers were mobilized from time to time. When Meng Bian arrived in Datong, he did not contact Jiang Xiang first, but came to the secret base of Qingluan Guard in Datong.

In the past few years, the Qingluan Guard has been secretly deploying in the north. Although some small cities have not been taken care of yet, there are basically spies from the Qingluan Guard in all the big cities. Datong Town was an important town among the nine borders in the Ming Dynasty, so naturally the Qingluan Guard has spies here, and there are quite a few of them, as many as ten people. All of them are led by Wang Jingxian, the chief envoy of the Qingluan Guard stationed in Datong.

That night.

Meng Bian sat in the shadows, Wang Jingxian stood respectfully below and reported the situation in Datong to Meng Bian.

"...Datong was one of the nine important towns in the former Ming Dynasty. It not only served to protect the capital, but was also the most important town to resist threats from the northwest. Therefore, Jiang Xiang, the general of Datong, was definitely not comparable to an ordinary general. His elder brother Jiang Rang was the general of Shaanxi Yulin, and his younger brother Jiang Xuan was the general of Shanxi Yanghe. The Jiang family had a huge influence in Shanxi and was deeply rooted."

"How many soldiers are there in Datong? Which factions do they belong to?"

"There are more than 20,000 soldiers inside and outside Datong, all under the command of Jiang Xiang. But in the entire Datong Town, the eight guards, seven bases, and 583 forts are all controlled by Jiang Xiang. If we talk about the total number of soldiers, there should be 70,000 to 80,000. However, among these soldiers, the elite ones are probably less than half."

Meng Bian pondered for a moment after hearing this, and then asked: "Has Jiang Xiang made any unusual moves? What is his relationship with the Qing court? Maybe he knows?"

Wang Jingxian nodded and said, "The relationship is not harmonious. Two years ago, Jiang Xiang went to Beijing and was reprimanded by Dorgon. Later, he repeatedly mobilized civilians and soldiers from Datong. Jiang Xiang and Ajige had many disputes. At the end of last year, Ajige forcibly seized the bride of Jiang Xiang's confidant. Jiang Xiang led his troops to surround Ajige's mansion and forced Ajige to release her. Because the incident was a bit serious, Dorgon first reprimanded Jiang Xiang for mobilizing troops, and then transferred Ajige back to Beijing. I think Jiang Xiang must be uneasy and has repeatedly mobilized troops back to Datong in private."

Jiang Xiang's power is huge. If he raises the banner of rebellion, it is not impossible that the entire province of Shanxi will change color overnight. It's just that Meng Jun now hopes that Jiang Xiang will wait for some more time. However, judging from Jiang Xiang's current actions, he is afraid that he can't wait even a year.

Meng Bian decided to meet Jiang Xiang in person tomorrow. Wang Jingxian was worried about Meng Bian's safety, but Meng Bian shook his head and said, "If I don't dare to meet Jiang Xiang in Datong, won't he underestimate my Qingluan Guards?"

The next day, Meng Bian brought only two skilled guards and asked to see Jiang Xiang in the name of a local squire. In the visiting card, there was only one word "Nan".

Jiang Xiang hurriedly ordered his confidant to quietly welcome Meng Bian in. In the study, Meng Bian and Jiang Xiang looked at each other.

Jiang Xiang was a man of sturdy build, with broad shoulders and waist, a square face, and a beard that reached his chest. At first glance, he looked quite heroic.

Jiang Xiang smiled at Meng Bian and asked, "What's your name, sir?"

Hearing this, Meng Bian smiled faintly and said, "I am not a young master. I am just a hunting dog in the hands of my young master."

Jiang Xiang narrowed his eyes slightly, and after a long while, he said, "Qingluan Guard? Meng Bian, the trusted subordinate of King Zhou?"

Meng Bi appeased him and said, "General Jiang is indeed wise. I just don't know how the general saw it."

Jiang Xiang smiled and said, "Mr. Meng's name has long been well-known throughout the world. Although there are some differences in the portraits, if you look closely, they are still somewhat similar. Moreover, I asked King Zhou to send an envoy here, so the one who comes must be King Zhou's confidant. As for your age and appearance, it seems that only Meng Bian, the commander of the Blue Luan Guard, who is under King Zhou's command, fits the bill. Of course, this is just my guess, but Mr. Meng is really brave, traveling thousands of miles to visit Datong in person."

"Now that I'm here, I will put life and death aside. For the sake of my master's great cause, I am just a slave, so why should I fear life and death? If anything happens to me in Datong, I believe that in the future, thousands of soldiers will avenge me."

"Haha, rest assured, Mr. Meng. I wouldn't dare to say anything about this elsewhere, but in Datong City, you can rest assured."

The two smiled at each other, and then started talking about business.

"The Tartars are unjust and have humiliated us repeatedly. I want to raise an army to retake the capital. I wonder if the King of Zhou will send troops to help?" Jiang Xiang leaned forward and whispered to Meng Bian.

"General Jiang, my king has just finished the battle in Huguang. His soldiers are exhausted and the treasury is short of money and food. We still need to collect the autumn grain before we can send out a large army."

After Meng Bian finished speaking, he advised Jiang Xiang, who was frowning, "If General Jiang can delay the uprising until next year, our army will certainly rush north to help, attack from both sides, drive out the Tartars in one fell swoop, and recapture the capital."

Hearing this, Jiang Xiang still shook his head. He could delay for a while, but he couldn't delay it that long, especially since his eldest son died of illness in Beijing. The Qing court also ordered Jiang Xiang to send his second son Jiang Yue to Beijing. The words were to employ people according to their abilities and select talents for the country, but the core meaning was to send him as a hostage.

Since Jiang Xiang had already decided to rebel against the Qing Dynasty, it was naturally impossible for him to abandon his son to Beijing. When Jiang Xiang received the imperial edict, he delayed the sending of his son Jiang Yue on the grounds that he was ill, but this was only a delaying tactic.

Jiang Xiang said in a deep voice: "Dorgon is very suspicious of me, especially since I sent troops to surround Ajige's residence. He first sent Wu Weihua to monitor me, and then ordered me to send my son to Beijing. I can't delay for a year. The longer it takes, the more alert Dorgon will be. Now is the best time to raise an army!"

Meng Bian was silent for a while, but after a while, he advised: "General, if you can delay it, then delay it for a while. If there is no reinforcement, it may be difficult to resist the Qing army in Datong alone."

Hearing this, Jiang Xiang smiled and said to Meng Bian, "Mr. Meng, you underestimate me. My Jiang family has been generals for generations, and their connections are not limited to Datong. If they are willing to help King Zhou, that would be great. But if they are unable to send troops, that's fine too. Now that Duoduo has been defeated, Haoge and Baiyintu are stationed on the north bank of the Yangtze River, and Beijing does not have enough troops. With the strength of my Jiang family, we can cope with it!"